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September 1998
In the midst of a busy summer, observing the small events of nature
brought a sense of quietness and continuity to my life.
The attractions of our backyard habitat have been steadily increasing
over the ten years of landscaping for wildlife.
In addition to seeing new bird species pass through or occasionally
visit, this year many birds were resident and used our yard to nest, feed and
rest. They used our birdbaths for drinking and bathing.
In one birdbath, I had placed a rock to just break the water's surface.
Small birds perched on it to bathe and drink, and a catbird bathed there
each evening.
All last winter I saved the fur from combing my cats, and in late March,
April and again in May, I put the tufts on twigs in shrubs near the house.
Two female orioles made frequent trips for this soft nest lining during a
two-week period. They took only the
white fur, never the black. Chickadees
and English sparrows also took the cat fur, but had no colour preference.
A titmouse showed interest, but didn't take any at all. The different
species of birds have their preferences for nesting materials.
Mourning doves found thin woody sprigs of thyme left from last year's
plants to use in building their nests. Robins
took long pieces of dead grasses and the dead leaves of daffodils.
We paid attention to the subtleties of bird behavior.
We observed courtship rituals, such as the dance up and down the trees by
a pair of northern flickers and a male cardinal feeding a female.
Some species started courting and nesting before others, and some, like
robins, cedar waxwings and English sparrows, nested more than once.
There were periods when we didn't see one or another of a pair, when they
were sitting on the eggs to incubate them.
Then there was the bustle of busy parents collecting food and flying back
to the nest. Fledglings followed
their parents around with mouths open or learned to use a feeder.
Finally, juveniles foraged for food on their own or explored a birdbath.
In late June, cedar waxwings came. First
I saw an adult feeding a young bird in the dying Russian olives next to the
deck. Then I noticed the adult
tugging at twine supporting some tall plants in the garden.
I cut pieces of twine about four inches long, loosened the fibers and put
them in the same area. For a few
days, an adult pair would stop at the serviceberry to gobble the barely ripe
berries, collect pieces of twine and fly off toward the next block.
Waxwings nest later in the summer when wild fruits are abundant.
They often build a second nest and even lay the second clutch of eggs
before the young in their first nest have fledged.
Goldfinches have been eating the ripe sunflower seeds in the garden, and
I look forward to their bright colours on other flowers gone to seed.
Catbirds, new to our yard, and robins enjoyed the midsummer crop of
dogwood fruit. We decided not to
cover the blueberries with netting this summer, and found there were plenty for
our neighbors, the birds and us.
Cardinals nested in a small patch of woods behind the house.
The pair brought their young to learn to use our feeder. Perhaps some of them will winter with us.
Winter just isn't winter without cardinals to brighten the landscape.
I hope the persistent fruits of the holly, winterberry, mountain ash and
the red jade crabapples we planted over the last few years will be good food
sources for them through the winter.
This year I was more successful in providing a long season of nectar
plants for ruby-throated hummingbirds. When
the salvia died in the June deluge, I bought two fuchsia plants.
When the red bee balm dried up, hollyhocks, blue globe thistle and small
tubular flowers kept the hummingbirds around the yard.
One evening in the middle of August, the female brought a young one to
visit the flower blossoms. Only in
May and early June, and again in September until mid-October do I use a nectar
feeder.
For the first time a pair of rose-breasted grosbeaks nested in the top of
the maple next to the house. At
daybreak during their nesting time, the male would perch on a particular dead
branch and sing the most delightful melody.
During the day, he used the same perch to call, perhaps announcing his
territory. Several times, drawn to the window by the sound of loud
squawking, I saw him chase grackles away from the nest.
The pair used the birdbaths and ate sunflowers at our feeder.
Other rose-breasted grosbeaks used the water and feeder, but not without
some harassment from our resident male. Once
the eggs had hatched, the male and female were constantly coming and going from
the nest, taking insects to their nestlings.
In June, one of the young rose-breasted grosbeaks must have fallen out of
the nest, because I noticed it hopping up the sidewalk!
For several days, the baby bird stayed in the shrubs and tall plants,
always coming to rest about three feet above the ground.
It knew how to keep very still for long periods of time, and its
black-and-white-streaked colouration was excellent camouflage.
The parents kept contact by calling to it, and they worked in shifts to
bring it insects. On the fifth day,
I watched it hop up the stalk of a day lily to the spirea bush and into the
small oak tree. Then it moved in an
upward spiral around the trunk by hopping from branch to branch, like a
staircase. It spent the day in the
oak, fed every few minutes by the male parent.
It seemed to be getting stronger and ready to fly.
Next day, when we saw several young rose-breasted grosbeaks using our
sunflower feeder, we decided that one of them was the fledgling we had been
observing.
Observing this tiny life and death drama, I had been tempted to help.
If someone called my office about a similar situation, I would suggest
letting nature take its course. The
only thing we should do is keep dogs and cats out of the area. I followed my own
advice. Wildlife know how to deal
with these situations which happen not infrequently. The parents took very good
care of the fledgling. The young
bird, endowed with its own wisdom for life, survived.
As I think back over the season, acceptance, trust and wonder were the teachings I received watching the marvelous creatures sharing my yard. There is an exchange of gifts going on here and I feel rich.
By Nancy Coverstone (ncstone@umext.maine.edu), University of Maine Extension Educator in Androscoggin and Sagadahoc Counties
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